Recruiting: Upstate Risings 2014, 2015 Standouts

ILPreps was in Syracuse this past weekend, where the annual Nike Upstate Risings event was held at Hennninger High School (right near my old stomping ground of Eastwood). The event brings most of the best rising players from New York's Section 3 (Syracuse/Central NY), Section 4 (Southern Tier), Section 5 (Rochester/Finger Lakes region) and Section 6 (Buffalo/Western NY) to compete in front of a bunch of college recruiters. The event is broken into three classes: rising sophomores (2015), rising juniors (2014) and rising seniors (2013).

Below, we take a look at some of the players who stood out in the 2014 and 2015 classes. And below that, you can see the results of the entire event.

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Ben Reeves, A, Palmyra-Macedon (Section 5) - The slick lefty showed why he's one of the best players in Section 5, creating opportunities every time he touched the ball. He's a wise player who knows how to draw attention and move the ball to open spaces. Like I've pointed out before, not the biggest player, but Reeves is one heady player. If he can put on some weight, Reeves is a premiere player in the mold of Nick Doktor by the time he's done at Pal-Mac.

Eric Soderquist, A, Watertown (Section 3) - The Watertown Cyclone showed me one of the consistently accurate and most powerful shots from any attackman in this class at this event. He has a very hard crank from out side, and he likes to go low to high with it. Against Section 5, he was fantastic, showing the ability to get his hands free, get separation and let loose. He's athletic and really is a nice overall attackman. He's grown since last season, and I liked his aggressive style of play. Soderquist has smarts. He put up 35 goals and 12 assists as a sophomore.

Connor Fields, A, Bishop Timon (Section 6) - A crafty finisher who makes lots of plays every time I watch him, Fields is an attackman to watch out of Buffalo. He's a big time scorer who's going to finish high school with a lot of points, having put up 57 points as a freshman and then 121 as a sophomore. A small but rugged lefty, he buries the ball when he's got time and room, and he doesn't need much of it. He was Section 6's most dangerous attackman at the event, working well with another nice player in Colin Greenway (Williamsville East), putting up multiple points in flurry for Section 6 against Section 4. Fields has committed to Albany, which was just broke in Geoff Shannon's most recent Recruiting Roundup.

Tyler Ford, M, Owego (Section 4) - I was impressed with him last year, and this year he was just outstanding. One of the hardest-working kids on the field, one of the best conditioned and one of the smartest, Tyler Ford will be a welcome addition to any recruiting class. He makes plays on both sides of the ball and showed that he can score when his team needs it. Ford has speed, plays tough and he has become more assertive with the ball than a season ago. He wowed everyone on the sideline when he took the ball at the end of the first half against Section 5, initiated from up top and just stung the top shelf as the defense fought to get a stick on him, scoring as time expired. Just before that, he came up with a loose ball, sailed up the field, got through the defense and wound up on the run to sting a shot that hit the post (for a nice sound effect to top off the play). Earlier, he scored a goal by fighting through multiple checks, coming back to his left and scoring with his off-hand. Here's a kid I'd watch to continue developing into a complete midfielder and to put Owego lacrosse on the map.

Pat Carlin, M, Vestal (Section 4) - This beast of a middie does it all: he can face-off, he can make plays between the lines and he's a threat to score. He's an absolute brute when taking the draw and was tough for the kids in his class to defend. He's a bull when he goes to the cage. A kid who seemed to be more of a finisher this past season, Carlin goes right and left and has a powerful shot with a quick release. He'll want to work on accuracy, but he was nearly impossible to stop from going to the cage with his size and speed. He's got all the tools to become a Division I player and make it happen at the next level. A real promising midfield specimen coming out of the Southern Tier.

Austin Cates, D/LSM, Corning (Section 4) - Great footwork was the first thing I noticed about this aggressive and heady defender, who was in the mix for every single groundball. He was physical, can move up the field quickly and really hounded ball carriers. An impressive overall defender here, Cates has the look and feel of a rugged pole who does a lot of things well.

Andrew Davi, D/LSM, New Hartford (Section 3) - A big, strong, physical defender who also chowed down groundballs and got up the field, Davi was impressive throughout the day and looked like the top defensive prospect on a very good Section 3 2014 squad. He's built like a Division I defender already and moves well for a bigger guy. Looks like an animal on the field.

Joe Eddinger, D, Canadiagua (Section 5) - Eddinger hustles all the time, which is what really stood out to me. He's got decent footwork, a solid frame and when he gets the chance, he gets up the field. Really a hard-working player, Eddinger should draw plenty of attention.

Nick Nehring, G, Corning (Section 4) - One of the tougher guys to beat that I saw at the event, Nehring communicates, sees the ball, plays tough and did about as well as you could for a guy in his position. He was impressive last year, and looks to be on a nice trajectory.

Merritt Bailey, G, McQuaid Jesuit (Section 5) - Bailey had moments in which he looked very sharp. He's a big kid who appears to be a solid athlete and really fills up the cage. He talks well, has long-range passing ability and came up with some big saves.

2015

Ryan Cosgrove, A, Churchville-Chili (Section 5) - The leading ninth-grade scorer in all of Section V last season with 20 goals and 16 assists, this guy was on my radar heading into the event. Cosgrove showed quicks, a nice sense for the field and solid stickwork. Cosgrove is the type of player who finds a way to make things happen and gets others involved, never letting up. He played on the left wing and was productive for Section V throughout the day as both a feeder and dodger.

Larson Sundown, A, Akron (Section 6) - Here's a player to watch who can do some exciting things on the field. Tremendous stick skills and good size for his class helped Sundown standout at Upstate Risings after impressing me the weekend prior while playing with the Iroquois Western Door club. His shots and passes are lasers, he's tough and he seems to feel plays developing. Sundown made a couple of passes from the midfield to attackman that were some of the best feeds I saw all day. He sees the field and makes things happen, and plays with that stoic nature that I see in so many Iroquois players. Section 6 folks say this kid could be scary good, and it looks like he's on his way.

Max Spaan, A, Penfield (Section 5) - Another heady player coming up the pipeline for Penfield, Spaan was a kid I noticed at Blue Chip, as well. Spaan had a real impressive jump shot against Section 4, leaping and ripping a righty shot stickside. He was a real pain on the ride, creating problems for larger defenders by getting all over their hands and using his quickness. He and Carter Jordan were the two lone freshman on a very good Penfield team in 2012. Spaan shows some real potential to blossom into a young threat in his sophomore season of play.

Sam Crusha, A, Corning (Section 4) - I really liked what I saw out of the Section 4 2015 crew, and had a hard time picking out the best of kids like Johnson City's Shane Majewski, Binghamton's James Zervos (who was very productive against Section 6) and Corning's Kyle Grimaldi. But Crusha looked like a polished, savvy player, scoring goals at opportune moments with a knack for finishing. He's also got a solid build for a younger kid, and overall, he looked very promising to me. Good things to come in the future for Section 4. Crusha scored twice against Section 6 and looked very slick with and without the ball.

Adrian Nash, M, Tully (Section 3) - Get used to hearing about this guy. His unbelievably quick change of direction and beautiful split dodge were on display as Nash was the most dangerous of Section 3's midfielders. This kid will light it up in high school, already a contributor as a freshman with 18 goals and 15 assists. He's fast in every way, has sharp stickwork and plays with confidence, even swagger. A real explosive player to watch, he was certainly the kid catching the most attention of the talented Section 3 midfield corps. It's tough not to really be high on Nash in watching all that he brings to the table.

Carter Jordan, M, Penfield (Section 5) - Here was a kid that impressed over the course of the afternoon. Jordan's a good decision maker, was a dangerous passer from up top and was also a playmaker off the face-off wings and in the midfield. He's got growing to do, but his lacrosse IQ is there already.

Luke Enbree, D, Corning (Section 4) - This kid's size and physical play stood out. He's a thick, strong kid who was tough on groundballs, throws hard checks and was tough to dodge against. With increased foot speed, he'll be a player to watch.

Tyler Skretny, LSM/D, West Seneca East (Section 6) - Skretny was all over the field, coming up with lots of groundballs, showing good legs in transition and creating lots of plays for Section 6. He's tall, has good reach and used both his big arms and his strong frame well in one-on-one situations.

Luke MacNeil, G, Penfield (Section 5) - Not easy to judge the young goalies here, but this little guy really stood out for his hand speed, his communication and his overall effort. He was completely selling out against Section 4, making saves in bunches and then leading the clear in fearless fashion, showing some real toughness.